Is it sweetest as
it fades?
When the dark,
expanded,
nips at its heels
and seals
our eyelids,
stills our tongues?
The balance slips.
Night swallows,
extends
a groping hand.
Curl and kneel
in tumbled dark,
humbled beneath
the weight
of bright memory,
the long, dark, starlit
night a stole
about bowed shoulders.
Breathe and wait.
Be Patient.
Already,
the Light
returns.
— C.Birde, 12/16
2 Comments
the poem begins with an innocuous question but the tone quickly becomes dramatic, terrifying. the image of sealing eyelids is especially strong.”Breathe and wait” sounds like good advice from someone who has been through the dark terrors before.
Thank you, Michael 🙂 I did not really intend this poem to sound menacing, but rereading it after receiving your feedback and perspective, I hear the words ring with a different tone! It is always curious, isn’t it, how we arrange and digest our own words and those of others. Language is truly mobile, versatile, and ultimately very personal. I always appreciate hearing from you 🙂